In the discussion that follows, reference is made to certain structures and/or methods. However, the following references should not be construed as an admission that these structures and/or methods constitute prior art. Applicants expressly reserve the right to demonstrate that such structures and/or methods do not qualify as prior art.
OH radical generation is central to many Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOP's) which are under development for the detoxification of water (Advanced oxidation Processes for Water and Wastewater Treatment, Ed. S. Parsons, (IWA Publishing, London, 2004)). The ability of TiO2-based materials to generate OH radicals under UV irradiation has been widely reported, but low photocatalytic efficiencies have limited the technological exploitation of this process.
Although the efficiency of OH generation is increased by the application of an electric field across the TiO2, current densities remain well below 1 mA cm−2 even with high power UV lamps (Rodriguez, J., et al., Thin Solid Films, 360, 250-255 (2000)).